Delavan shooting tied to gang activity

ELKHORN  A recent shooting by three men in Delavan was gang related, the caseís prosecutor said Thursday.

Esteven J. Duran, 21, Steven Barrera, 20, and Ross P. Koepke, 16, all of Delavan are accused of driving to a Delavan home and shooting three to four times at a 19-year-old man.

The victim told police he was standing between two vehicles in the driveway of his home, texting on his cell phone, when two people approached him and fired four times.

Court documents identify the two men as Koepke and Duran. Barrera told police he drove the two and waited for them to return, knowing they had a loaded gun. Barrera also told police that, upon returning, Koepke told him the duo had confronted people at a residence and that he tried to hit them with the shots, according to the criminal complaint.

The four bullets went into the garage of the victimís Spruce Street home, according to the criminal complaint.

Assistant District Attorney Zeke Wiedenfeld, who is prosecuting the case, said Thursday that the shooting was gang-related, but he could not elaborate on the motive.

Duran, Barrera and Koepke are charged in with first-degree reckless endangerment as a party to a crime, a felony that carries a maximum penalty of 12 1/2 years in prison and $25,000 fine. Duran is also charged with possession of a firearm by a felon and faces 10 additional years in prison and $25,000 in fines.

The weapon was recovered at the home of a man who took it from Duran. Delavan police officers executed a search warrant at the manís home and located a .45-caliber handgun and ammunition beneath the manís bed.

He later told officers that Duran told him to hide the gun, or ďhe was in for it.Ē